Share
Email
PrintCatholic cleric comes out against Jewish state
The Roman Catholic Church’s top cleric in the Holy Land said Israel should not be designated a Jewish state.
Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah came out this week against the Olmert government’s demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state before peace talks can proceed.
“God made this land for all three of us so a suitable state is one who can adapt itself to the vocation of this land,” said Sabbah, an Arab who was born in the northern Israeli town of Nazareth and who regularly officiates at religious events in the Palestinian Authority town of Bethlehem.
“If it’s Jewish, it’s not Muslim or Christian,” he told reporters.
Sabbah had no word on whether a future Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip should not be allowed to favor Muslims given those territories’ sanctity to Jews and Christians.
Israel guarantees freedom of worship to all faiths.
Click to login and write a letter to the editor or register for a new account.
This article was made possible by the support of readers like you. Donate to JTA now.
Trackback URL: http://jta.org/trackback/106011/
No trackbacks have been created for this article, be the first to create one.